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With everyone in the hot, sweaty grip of World Cup fever, transfer gossip has taken a back seat on the news agenda since the season ended. However, its now June, traditionally the start of the silly season, and The Spoiler is ready to put on its wellies and dive feet first into another summer of hearsay, conjecture, and (because it’s a World Cup year) more panic buys and gambles than usual.

As usual, Man City are hogging the transfer headlines. According to the Daily Mail, the Roberto Mancini has laid out a £36m deal to bring 24-year-old Wolfsburg striker Edin Dzeko to Eastlands. However, according to everyone else, he’s set to “speak to the hand” as the club’s general manager is adamant the highly-rated forward is staying put.

Villa have slapped a £30m price tag on James Milner, who met with Martin O’Neill at the start of the week to confirm he wants out of Villa Park, say The Sun, who are also reporting Hull‘s part-time comedian Jimmy Bullard has agreed a year-long loan deal with Celtic.

Speaking to Radio Five Live yesterday, Harry Redknapp announced he’s ‘got a feeling’ out-of-contract Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole has already wrapped up a deal away from Stamford Bridge – but it’s not with Spurs.

Elsewhere in the Premier League, Fulham boss Roy Hodgson is being touted as the next Inter manager; while effeminate Real Madrid playmaker Guti is apparently ready to leave the confines of the Bernabeu for the first time, at the ripe old age of 33, to go and play alongside the tough nuts at Blackburn, with the midfielder’s agent apparently quite keen on the idea.

The biggest shock of the day comes attached in a two-for-one offer with the best quote of the day. Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro has turned down a one-year extension at Juventus to join UAE club Al-Ahli, revealing the move “realises my dream of living in Dubai and finishing my career playing for one of its clubs”.

The Spoiler assumes the dream Fabio is referring to is the trance-like state he fell into once the club shoved an eight-figure contract under his nose.